The Story of Raine
by The Nut Tree
Summary: ON HIATUS! For such an important mission, why did Urahara let Ichigo and friends go into the Soul Society with only Yoruichi? Wouldn't he have sent in backup?  Better summary inside! Rated T for future violence/language, just to be safe.
1. Author's Note

AUTHOR'S NOTE

First of all, I own nothing except for Raine, Sakura, Kairi, and Riku. BLEACH (including characters, plot, dialogue, etc) is not, nor will it ever be, mine. That is a fact that I have to deal with every day.

I am writing this for a few reasons. Probably no one who reads this will care what they are. So here are the reasons:

1. I am currently obsessed with BLEACH.

2. I like to write.

3. In my previous writings, I think that the dialogue between characters as well as character development needs improvement.

4. I am bored.

Please note that this fanfic fits with the anime. I suggest watching the anime episodes that correspond with my written chapters. You don't have to, it's just a suggestion. To reviewers: I am a strong believer in "if you can't say anything nice, then don't say anything at all". Please remember that this is my fic and I can do whatever I want in it. **Don't like it? Don't read it.** Constructive criticisms are always welcome.

Spoilers are a given in this writing, so...you've been warned!

BETTER SUMMARY:  
For such an important mission, why did Urahara let Ichigo and friends go into the Soul Society with only Yoruichi? Wouldn't he have sent in more backup?  
Besides, whoever said that only Kisuke, Yoruichi, the Visoreds, and (of course) Aizen were the only Soul Reapers to be banished or defect from the Soul Society? There have to be others, right? This is one such story. This is the story of Raine.


	2. Still a Soul Reaper

**CHAPTER ONE — Still a Soul Reaper**

___…_Six…seven…eight…nine…one hundred fifty!

The man rolled over onto his back, panting slightly. "Cool down exercises…complete!" He lay there, in the dirt, waiting for his arms to stop shaking. The man glanced to his right, searching in the gloom the forest canopy had created. He knew Riku was there, propped up against a tree, just waiting for him. After several seconds of searching, he managed to see the shape he recognized as Riku's.

A shadow enveloped everything in darkness and Riku's outline disappeared. The man shifted his gaze skyward. A cloud, highlighted in magnificent silver moonlight, covered the waxing gibbous. _It's about…ten o'clock, I think. I better wash up and get some sleep. I'm going to need to be well-rested. Tomorrow is high intensity training day._

Groaning softly, the man got onto his hands and knees. Although his arms were still weak from the push-ups, he began to crawl towards Riku. He closed his eyes, tired from the day's training; the darkness encouraged sleep to come. An irritating tickling on his face aroused his quickly-fading mind. Sweat had trickled from his forehead and down to the end of his nose. He stopped to wipe the droplet away before continuing towards Riku.

His hand caressed a root protruding from the dirt and he opened his eyes. The man turned around and leaned back against the tree. The rough ridges in the bark pressed uncomfortably through his shirt, digging into his back—a constant reminder that he should not fall asleep here. He looked at the moon, temporarily peeking out from the clouds before retreating behind another cloud.

The man inhaled deeply, savoring the cool night air that filled his lungs. The sweat was beginning to dry, making him shiver. He lifted an arm above his head. He sniffed his armpit and promptly grimaced. "Damn, I reek." He let his arm fall into his lap and closed his eyes again, enjoying the momentary break from his daily routine. The clouds continued to pass across the moon, repeatedly bathing him in both dark shadows and soft light.

Despite the uncomfortable bark pressing into his back, the man began to slowly drift off to sleep. Before his re-occurring nightmare could begin, he felt a small force pressing at his mind. The hair on his skull prickled. The man's eyes snapped open and he sat up. He looked down at the thick tan bracelet on his right wrist for a moment. He sighed. "Of course! Tranquility like this can never last long without being spoiled."

He stood up and grunted as he stretched his stiff limbs. He inhaled one last time, relishing the cool air. Spinning on the balls of his feet, he reached out with his right hand and grabbed Riku by the sheath, directly below the guard. The man took the Zanpakuto and pushed it through the thick leather belt around his waist. Riku hung there on his left hip, between the belt and the hakama he was wearing. His left hand adjusted Riku slightly, while the other hand moved to touch his left breast. A few seconds later, the man gave a satisfied grunt; he was ready. With a hand on the hilt, he ran off into the night.

"I am still a Soul Reaper, after all…"


	3. Sayonara, Hollow

**CHAPTER TWO — Sayonara, Hollow**

The Soul Reaper was perfectly balanced on the top of the telephone pole. He knew it was coming. He knew he had to fight. He knew there was always a possibility that he could lose, that he could die tonight. His heart thumped painfully in his chest and his respiration increased. _How annoying. One would think that after all these years I would stop having these damn panic attacks before battle!_

Closing his eyes and letting his chin fall to his chest, the man cleared his mind and began his deep breathing exercises. The little finger on his left hand began to play with the thin braid of blond hair which was delicately tied around Riku's guard. His breathing and heartbeat slowly returned to normal. But the force pressing in the back of his mind was still there, no matter how hard he tried to ignore it. _Based on its Spirit Pressure, it seems to be just an average Hollow._ He opened his eyes. _Here it comes._

A block down the street, a spirit stumbled around a corner. In his panicked hurry, he tripped over his own feet. He looked backwards and, on his hands and knees, scampered into the road. Although oblivious to the Soul Reaper's presence, the spirit began to run towards the man on the telephone pole. After the spirit crawled about thirty yards, the Hollow appeared from around the corner, walking almost leisurely towards its meal.

The Soul Reaper observed it as it began to close the gap on the spirit. It reminded him of giant cockroach, half as long as a bus but just as wide. It had a swollen bulge for a head, with countless, short needles covering the back of the lumpy skull, making it appear to have hair. Its white mask had large, square eye sockets and no nose; the mouth was made up of four rows of pointed teeth. Enormous mandibles grew out of the side of the head and snapped threateningly together in front of the mouth.

The sprit, still on the ground, glanced over his shoulder at the monster that was pursuing him. Because he was still trying to crawl away while he was twisting around to look, the terrified spirit fell right on his face. He did not continue to flee. With a look of absolute horror, he simply turned around to face the creature. Sensing that the chase was over, the Hollow roared. It opened its mandibles open as wide as possible and closed in on its prey, teeth gnashing.

In an instant, the Soul Reaper flash-stepped in front of the charging Hollow, his outstretched hand a mere foot from its mask. Unable to react in time, the Hollow collided violently with the man's right palm. The man slid backwards a few inches, causing small dust clouds and making bits of loose cement to shoot up. A small blast of air pushed the Soul Reaper's long black hair into his eyes. Using his left hand, he moved a strand of hair aside.

The Hollow was seemingly stunned, with several of its insect-like legs still in mid-stride. The man's mouth twitched upward slightly. _Probably trying to process what just happened. Hollows are so damn slow._ He focused his attention on his right arm, glancing first at the tan bangle on his wrist, then at the hand pressed against the Hollow's nose-less face. The mask was smooth and cool to the touch. If he focused hard enough, the man could feel the creature's Spirit Energy pulsating beneath the mask. It was an unnatural sensation. He shivered slightly. Suddenly, the teeth-gnashing resumed. Fortunately, the Soul Reaper was holding the Hollow back at arm's length, so its efforts were futile.

"So, you're awake then? I've seen my share of Hollows in my life, but you certainly are unique-looking," he taunted, chuckling lightly. "I'll bet you didn't know that I really—"

The beast's mandibles twitched and the Soul Reaper flash-stepped backwards, landing next to the overwhelmed spirit, narrowly avoiding being cleaved in two by the razor-sharp appendages.

"—hate—"

The Hollow slowly opened its mandibles, apparently confused as to where its second meal had gone. As soon as the gap was wide enough for him to fit through, the Soul Reaper launched himself past the opening mandibles, straight towards the creature's mask. With his left hand, he made a fist and poised himself to strike.

"—bugs!"

His fist collided with the nose-less mask, sending the Hollow reeling backwards down the street. The man shook out his hand, trying to dispel the painful throbbing in his knuckles. "I think they all need to be squashed."

"What are y-you?" a frightened voice whispered.

The man turned to look back at the spirit. "I'm a Soul Reaper. I suppose you could also call me," he shrugged. "An exterminator."

"What's a so—AHH!" The spirit threw his arms up in a defensive pose. The Soul Reaper spun around to face the enemy. The Hollow was gnashing its teeth as it quickly covered the distance between them. A large crack ran from the center of the mask up to the left eye socket. It roared angrily. The man placed his left hand on Riku's hilt.

"What are you so upset about? You finally have a nose. You should be thanking me." With a grin on his face, he raised his hand. He aimed his pointer finger at the charging creature.

"Byakurai."

A warm, tingling sensation briefly welled at the tip, before a bolt of blue energy erupted from the Soul Reaper's finger. Hot wind due to the intensity of the Kido spell caused his hair to be wildly tossed about as the white-blue light made the shadows dance crazily. The attack struck the Hollow square in the mask—shattering it—and continuing out the back of its head. When the spell ended, the Hollow collapsed, dead; already its form was disintegrating into countless spirit particles. Seconds later, it was gone completely.

"Goodbye…"

The Soul Reaper lowered his arm and slowly turned to face the spirit, who was paralyzed with fear and awe. The man strode over to spirit, who immediately unfroze and began begging for his life. "Please don't kill me! I'm not a monster like that thing! Please just leave me alone!"

The Soul Reaper knelt on the hard cement next to the spirit. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm here to help you pass on."

The spirit sniffed and looked up at the man's comforting expression. "Really? How?" He warily eyed the Soul Reaper's finger. "I don't want to be shot full of magic lightning!"

"No, no. Nothing like that. I'm going to perform a Konso. What happens is that I'm going to take my Zanpakuto and place the end of the hilt on your forehead. When I do that, you will be taken to a place called the Soul Society."

"What's a…zanpatuko?"

The Soul Reaper reached up near his left breast and grasped the four-inch hilt of a tanto-style dagger. Sliding it out of the chest sheath, he laid the seven-inch-long blade across his left palm. "This is my Zanpakuto, Kasumiaka. And this—"

He placed his left hand on Riku.

"—is Riku. I will use Kasumiaka for the Konso. Are you ready?"

After a brief pause to allow everything he just heard to sink in, the spirit nodded.

"Good. Here we go." He gently placed the end of Kasumiaka's hilt against the spirit, leaving a glowing symbol on his forehead. The spirit sighed and, in a flash, was gone. The Soul Reaper groaned as he got to his feet. He looked skyward as he sheathed Kasumiaka. _Damn it, it's late!_ _So much for that bath…t__he river is too cold anyway._ He sighed and turned to leave.

"Without even using a Zanpakuto…"

The Soul Reaper reacted instinctively in an instant, drawing Kasumiaka and bending his knees as he got into a standard defensive-fighting position while spinning around to face a small side street from where the foreign voice still continued to echo in the gloom. Footsteps—as if walking heel-toe, heel-toe—began to slowly clack towards him.

"…have you always been this strong?"

A figure appeared from the shadows and the Soul Reaper relaxed slightly out of astonishment. _A human? _Despite walking with a cane, the stranger strolled forward with ease before stopping just before passing underneath the beam of light from a glowing streetlamp. Although a hat covered his eyes and most of his nose in shadows, the Soul Reaper could clearly see the small smile across the man's face. With a quiet chuckle, the man said, "It seems that I have succeeded where the Soul Society failed…" He lifted his arm and pointed the cane at the Soul Reaper.

"…I found you."


	4. Strange Stranger

**CHAPTER THREE — Strange Stranger**

Raine stood there, frozen, out of shock. Hundreds of thoughts flashed through his mind, yet he couldn't manage to voice any of them. _How does he know my name? Is he a Soul Reaper? He's not even carrying a Zanpakuto. He must be wearing a Gigai. _Raine gritted his teeth and began to go through his breathing exercises before he had a full-blown panic attack. _There are two possibilities. One: he is a tracker the higher-ups sent to find me; they would have briefed him. He would have memorized every detail about me. But I never even felt his Spiritual Pressure. _A bead of sweat tickled his cheek, but he ignored it. _He would have to be exceptionally skilled at hiding his reiatsu if I never felt it while he was trailing me._

_The second possibility is that this man is someone from my past. With age comes power. And only those who are powerful to begin with would have lived this long, meaning this man is either a lieutenant, or—_he shivered—_a captain._ He tightened his grip on Kasumiaka. The dark scowl of a man slowly developed upon his face.

_Either possibility would explain how he recognizes me and knows my name. A high-ranking officer of the Gotei 13 would have no problems with concealing their reiatsu like this! A captain could easily capture, and bring me back to the Soul Society so the old codger could hand down my punishment from so long ago! _Raine took a deep breath. _Captains would be able to hunt me down with little difficulty, but would never expose themselves like this. Trackers are stealthy, but rarely above a sixth- or seventh-seat in strength. He's still in his Gigai, so he's either a fool…or he's not a tracker. Damn! I hope that he is. I don't know if I could survive a battle against an old captain…_

_Then again, there's always the possibility that he is a tracker and he just assumed I had become weak after all this time. _He briefly glanced at the bracelet. _He would have sensed only that small amount of reiatsu that leaked out when I used that Kido spell before. But would that really cause him to become so overconfident that he wouldn't even get out of his Gigai? I have to know—_

"Speechless, I see," the stranger said, breaking Raine's rushing thoughts. "I suppose that's to be expected." From nowhere, he pulls out a fan, and—with a goofy grin on his face—begins waving it at the Soul Reaper teasingly as he continues in a jovial tone. "It isn't all that often that someone so devilishly handsome from your past walks up to you and says 'howdy-do'!"

_From my—? Shit!_

Raine's left hand moved down to Riku's hilt. He grabbed it in a reverse-grip, but did not draw the sword. _I'm going to have to fight for my freedom. Considering what I was charged with, he will likely have permission to kill me if I resist arrest._

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Like what?" Raine snapped back.

"You're looking at me as if I were an enemy."

Raine scoffed. "Aren't you?"

"I'm a friend…you may not think of me as such, but at the very least you could call me an ally."

"Ally? Why would I consider someone like you to be my ally?"

"Someone like me? To tell you the truth, I'm a little hurt by that. I would think you would be a little more appreciative towards the man who helped you escape from the Soul Society all those years ago."

"Every single Soul Reaper in the Seireitei was trying to capture me! I was on my own. No one even tried to help!"

"You still haven't figured it out, huh…" The stranger reached up and put his hand on the top of his hat. "Well, then…" With dramatic slowness, the stranger removed the hat and stepped forward into the light. "How about now?"

Raine nearly dropped Kasumiaka in surprise. He could only stare at the sandy-haired man in front of him. _How did I not recognize him before? The cane…those loud wooden sandals…that stupid hat._ With an irritated sigh, Raine returned Kasumiaka to the chest sheath. "You could have just told me who you were." He began walking towards the man.

"But that wouldn't have been as fun!"

"Fun? I didn't think it was!"

"Sorry about that. No hard feelings?"

Raine stopped at the edge of the light, less than three feet from the man. "For playing games? None at all. I really am quite appreciative for this bracelet you gave me." He held up his wrist. "But now let's see how good your memory is…do you remember my departing words the last time I saw you?"

"Hmm? Oh…give me a sec—"

"How about a hint? I said, 'You are the reason I was forced to defect from the Soul Society'—"

He punched the man, sending him flying. He landed, hard, on the sidewalk. The hat tumbled through the air and landed gracefully next to the man.

"—Kisuke Urahara!"


End file.
